Perfect Presents
by HandswithRoses
Summary: What will Aria and Ezra give each other for Christmas?


Perfect Presents

Aria's POV:

I woke up smelling the breakfast that Ella was making. I jumped out of my bed and went to the kitchen, after putting on my clothes and applying some make-up.

"Good morning Ella", I said while walking towards her.

"Morning Aria, do you want some eggs?" She said already picking up a plate.

"Sure, it smells good." I took the plate from Ella's hands and walked to the table. Just when I put the plate on the table, Byron came, walking into the kitchen.

"It's lovely to see my favorite girls on this beautiful day." He said smiling from ear to ear. He gave Ella a small kiss on her cheek and he grabbed a plate.

"Please remind me, why is today such a special day?" Ella asked looking a little bit confused over Byron's good mood. He was always quiet in the mornings. He ate his breakfast while reading the newspaper and after he finished, he left for work. He never really said anything besides "Good morning". Byron took a seat next to me, still wearing the big smile on his face.

"Well?" Ella said getting a little bit annoyed by his behavior. She took a seat across from Byron.

He looked up and said: "I'm just really excited about the Holidays, you know, since we didn't spend it with our family together last year." I didn't want to be reminded of last year's Christmas ever again, it was horrible. My parents separated two days before Christmas, Byron left and Ella stayed. Ella didn't feel like going to any friends or family. She didn't cook either. I felt bad for her, so I decided to stay home as well. We ordered take-out and we watched a few movies together. I had to comfort her every once in a while, because she thought that it was all her fault. We didn't have a Christmas tree either, because Byron used to get it and we would decorate it all together. It wouldn't have felt right if we would have decorated it without him. It didn't feel like Christmas at all.

My birthday also happened to be the day before Christmas, it was a total blur. Ella was holed up in her bed all day and Mike was on a trip with his lacrosse team. The girls managed to get me dressed and they took me to the Grill. I didn't talk that much and I wanted to go home after an hour. Only Ezra's present caused me to smile. He made me a cake, which read in chocolate letters:

'Happy Birthday Aria, I'm here for you, right now and forever'

He wrote me a birthday card as well which said that he made the cake all by himself and that I should think twice before I was going to eat it. His cooking skills were still a little doubtful, but it made me smile every time he tried to impress me with his cooking.

"Yeah, I'm really excited about this year's Christmas too. And your birthday's coming up too, Aria! Do you already know how to celebrate it this year?" Ella said. Ella always loved planning big birthday parties for Mike and me. I would like to keep it small this year, just the girls and my family. I wasn't sure if Ella would be disappointed but I decided to be honest.

"I want to go for a small event, just the girls, you two and Mike." I said staring at my almost empty plate, because I didn't want to see the expression on Ella's face.

"But you can have your 18th birthday just once; don't you want to celebrate it a little bit bigger?" I forced myself to look at Byron, who was just nodding in agreement. I didn't really want a big birthday party, I wanted to spend my birthday with Ezra, but I couldn't exactly invite him over. We would be legal, but he would still be my teacher. If I would have a small party, there was a chance that we could meet up afterwards.

I ate the rest of my eggs, because I didn't feel like responding. I had to go to school, so we couldn't really talk about it that much longer anyways. I picked my plate up from the table and put it in the sink. I walked to the front door and I said quickly: "We'll talk about it later; I've got to head to school"

I parked my car in the half-full lot in an empty spot, beside Ezra's car. His car was parked at the same spot it had been parked every day since he started teaching at Rosewood Day. My locker was next to Ezra's classroom, so I could peek in to see if he was already there. He was very focused on grading papers; he looked adorable when he didn't know that I was watching him. I stood there for a minute, until he looked through the door window straight into my eyes. The second he saw me, he began to smile. I opened the door and returned his smile.

"Morning beautiful" Ezra said still wearing that boyish smile I loved so much. I walked to his desk, not letting his eyes go for a single second. I saw my own eyes staring in his.

"Good morning Ezra," I said while I picked up his cup of coffee and took a little sip, "still grading papers?"

"Yeah, but this is actually the last one, so I made it just in time. But enough about that. Your birthday is next week, did Ella mention something about it already?" He asked while putting the papers in his leather briefcase.

"Yes, she did, this morning. I told her I didn't want anything big, just my friends and my family, but she's always into big parties, so she tried to convince me to have something bigger. I didn't really respond and I told her that we would talk about it later. I wanted to talk to you about it first. Because I figured that if I would have a small party, there might be a chance I could see you afterwards"

"Aria, you can have a big party if you want that, I don't want to take that away from you. You'll have just one 18th birthday"

"No Ezra, I really want a small party. I don't want to invite people I barely know. I want to celebrate my birthday with the people I love" He placed my hands in his and gave them a soft kiss. At that moment the bell rang and he let go of my hands.

"If that's what you want, you'll have it that way" He said smiling before he walked to the blackboard to write some notes on it. I went to my seat and I waited for the other students to come in. The class went by way to fast for my liking. I stole a few smiles and stares from him, like I always did. The rest of the day went by just as fast as my first period and before I knew it, I was home again.

When I walked through the front door, I saw Ella in the kitchen, reading a book. She looked around when she heard the door fall into its lock.

"How was school today, sweetie?" Ella asked putting her book down to talk to me.

"It was a normal day at school, nothing special" I said while walking towards her. "About my birthday, I'm still determined to celebrate it small, I hope that doesn't upset you or anything?" I said, forcing myself to look into her eyes.

"It's okay Aria, it's your birthday, so it's also your choice to make"

"Thanks Ella that means a lot" I walked out of the kitchen and I headed to my room.

* * *

><p>A week later, my birthday had finally arrived. Ezra and I were legal, which was the best part about this whole day. I opened my eyes and I saw a rose beside my bed. Roses were my favorite flowers, but nobody knew that, besides Ezra. But he couldn't have been in my room, could he? There was a little note attached to the rose. 'Follow the roses and see where it gets you', it was definitely Ezra's handwriting, I would recognize it anywhere. I followed the roses to the kitchen. There was another rose on the table, it lay on top of something. I picked up the rose and I saw a notebook. I opened it and I saw another note,<p>

_Happy Birthday my beautiful Aria,_

_This is our story. I want you to have the original copy. You have turned my world upside down, since the moment I first met you. When I first looked into your eyes, I saw the most beautiful and inspiring ones staring into mine. When I look into them right now, I see the time we've already spend together and the time that has yet to come for us. You have my heart and I don't want it back anymore. My heart is wherever you are._

_I love you, Ezra_

I couldn't help the tears that fell from my eyes. This was the best present anyone had ever given me. I read the note a thousand times, before I decided to pick up all the roses in the house and put them in a vase. There was one smaller rose that you couldn't see in the bouquet. I took the rose out of the vintage vase and put it in my hair. I made sure that my outfit matched with the rose, I chose a bag that fitted with my outfit and I headed to the kitchen again to grab some coffee.

"Happy Birthday, sweetie!" Ella said, coming over to me, hugging me before I could say something. She loosened her arms from my body. "Do you want some coffee? I just made some."

"Yeah, sure."

"You look very beautiful today. Since when do we have fresh flowers in our home though?" Ella said while she put my coffee in a paper cup, so I could take it to go.

"Uh, it's an uh, birthday present, from a friend!" I didn't really know how to respond, I hadn't really thought about it. "I guess I'm going to get going, I don't want detention on my birthday." Ella smiled at my comment and I walked out of the front door.

Ten minutes later I arrived at school and I went straight to my locker. I looked inside Ezra's classroom, but he wasn't there yet. Because I didn't have anything else to do, I decided to go to the library. I loved libraries, the way all the books smelled and how every book held another story. The different adventures the main characters have to go through, other problems they might have and also a lot of different love stories. There were still so many books for me to read. Ezra recommended some books, he read so many books, he can easily tell me which one I'll like and which one I won't like at all. Before I could settle down with a nice book in my lap, the bell for first period rang.

When I came in Ezra's classroom, he was writing something on the blackboard. I went to my desk and I took my books out of my bag. Before I opened my books I looked up at Ezra. He was staring to the rose in my hair and he had the cutest smile on his face after I confirmed him with my eyes that I got his present. I overheard some girls talking about Christmas shopping and that's when it hit me, I didn't have a Christmas present for Ezra yet! While I was thinking, Ezra started his class. I think he was talking about the book we were reading, but I wasn't sure. Normally, I paid attention in English class, because I loved the subject and because I loved the way Ezra would look at me every once in a while with those gorgeous blue eyes. But I really needed to think about what present I should get him instead. Would one of his favorite books be too easy? Or perfume, maybe? But if you give someone perfume it's almost like you're saying that this person smells bad or something like that. This wasn't true at all, Ezra smelled great, I loved his scent.

"Miss Montgomery, do you want to answer that question?" Ezra said. I didn't know what the question was or what his whole lecture was about, so I settled with: "I'm sorry Mr. Fitz, I didn't hear your question."

"Well, the question was: why do you think it was hard for the writer to publish this book?" He said, walking closer to me. Writer. Publish. Book. Those were the words I was looking for. I knew immediately what I wanted to give Ezra. His first published book. But if I wanted to give it to him in just one day, there was no time to lose. I was already packing up my books when a confused looking Ezra said: "Well?"

"I'm sorry, I just remembered that I need to make a really important phone call. And afterwards I think I have an appointment. I guess I should leave then, right Mr. Fitz?" I said, placing my bag on my shoulder.

"I guess so, just make sure you ask someone about the homework assignment, Miss Montgomery." He said still looking really confused.

I rushed out of the classroom and I went home as fast as I could. Ella had read a short story out loud once and she had some business cards from a few publishers that were interested in her. To her it was just a nice experience to write a short story. She thought it would be nice if she could read it out loud, so she would know what people thought about it. After that, she just kept the business cards in case she felt like writing again. It never came back though.

I walked into the living room and I was surprised that there was no one at home. All the better for me. Now, I wouldn't have to answer the questions that I really couldn't answer about why I was home so early. There was a little bookcase against the wall and I knew the business cards had to be somewhere in there. I looked for about three minutes, until I found the cards, hidden in an old notebook. I decided to call the card that was on top first.

"Hello, I'm Aria Montgomery. I'm calling because I have a pretty special Christmas present for a very special someone in mind. I would like to have his short story published. And if it could be possible, I would like to have the first copy in his hands on Christmas Eve. "

"Well, first off, I'm having the best day, so I would like for you to come over here so that I can read his short story and then I'll see if I'm going to make someone's wish come true this Christmas. Are you available, in about 30 minutes?" The publisher said who was named Pete. It was a twenty minute ride, so I could make it in time.

"Yes, definitely. Thank you already, for making time for me. I really appreciate this. I guess I'll see you in thirty minutes." I said, already picking up my new black bag. I ended the phone call, I grabbed Ezra's short story he gave me for my birthday and I walked out of my house. First I locked the front door and then I went to my car.

When I got inside the building, there was an assistant waiting for me. She asked me if I could fill in some papers, if the story would be a go. I filled the papers in and I waited until Pete came to talk to me.

"Welcome Aria, it's very nice to meet you." Pete said while he walked me to his office. He told me to sit down and he went to his desk as well. I gave him Ezra's short story and he just started to read it. After fifteen minutes he looked up from the paper and smiled to me.

"Your special someone is a very good writer. He's talented. Do you mind if I read the whole story and when I finish I'll call you? That will be probably tonight around seven. I'll tell you my decision tonight as well. If it will be published, I will also talk to you about a few details. But I think it can be done by Christmas Eve."

"Okay, that sounds like a plan. I gave my number to your assistant. Can I just ask one question already?" I said, looking into his eyes to see if he would speak the truth.

"Yeah, sure, why not?"

"Do you think there actually is a chance that you will get this short story published?" I said still looking into his eyes, they were sincere.

"I don't want to waste my time on reading a short story I'm already sure about I won't publish. So to answer your question, there's definitely a big chance that your Christmas present is a go."

I didn't say anything back anymore, I just kept smiling. I was very content with what I had reached that morning. I didn't really feel like going back to school again, so I decided to go home instead. I was just walking into my bedroom, when I got a text from Ezra:

_Where are you, love? –EF_

He couldn't get suspicious about my special plan for him, so I thought it was better to lie to him. I would tell him the truth later.

_I forgot about my dentists' appointment and had to reschedule. Love you. –AM_

I quickly send the text and I started pacing through my room. How could I actually give him my present? He was going to visit his mother on Christmas Eve in New York. His whole family was going to be there, so he decided to go as well. It wasn't like he could spend his Christmas with me. Those were the moments when a forbidden relationship sucked even more. We can't spend those special days together, like Christmas or New Years. Only Valentine's Day was ours. Last year we went to New York together, the whole weekend. I never really was a Valentine's Day fan, until last year. It felt so good, being out in public with Ezra. Holding his hand, kissing him and say I love you to each other out in the open, where no one cared. They didn't see the teacher/student relationship; they saw two people in love.

I was thinking about so many things that I didn't hear Byron come into my room.

"Happy Birthday Aria!" He gave me a hug and he had a big smile spread across his face. "Would you like to come with me, so we can pick out a Christmas tree?" He said still wearing the smile. I didn't really have that much to do anyways.

"Yeah sure Byron, let me just get my purse and my coat and I'll be right behind you" I said already looking for my purse. I looked in the closet and there I found my purse. My coat was probably downstairs, because I couldn't find it in my messy room. When I walked into the kitchen, I saw Ella and Byron talking about something, but I couldn't exactly hear what it was. Byron looked angry or confused, but Ella tried to comfort him, she told him everything would be okay.

"What is going to be okay, Ella?" I asked without hesitating.

"Oh, just... nothing," Ella said locking eyes with Byron, "is there someone added to your invitation list?" She said looking to me again.

"No, why would you ask?" I was getting really confused at this point, they were acting different, a lot different.

"Never mind"

"Let's go then" Byron and Ella said at the same time.

We went to the store and were careful not to buy the first Christmas tree we saw. We didn't want a tree too big or too small. We dropped Ella at the local supermarket to get some snacks for my birthday. After walking through all the trees, Byron and I both agreed on the same tree. We decided to buy it, in case someone else would. After we bought the tree, we put it in the back of the car and made our way to the supermarket again. Ella was already outside waiting for us with her shopping bags in her hands. Ten minutes later we were back home and we all helped placing the tree on the right spot. After we were finished we decided to decorate it tomorrow and I made my way up to my room. There was still some time to kill and I figured I should read a little before Pete called.

It was 7:15 already and I hadn't heard anything from Pete yet. I was so scared he didn't like Ezra's short story and that he decided to ditch me instead of call. A few seconds later, my phone ringed, it said that Pete was calling! I answered my phone rather quickly.

"Hey" I said a little bit too enthusiastic.

"Hello Aria, I just wanted to congratulate your special someone on being such a talented writer and I would be really proud if you would allow me to publish his short story. I really loved this short story, Aria. I feel a little bit like Santa Clause right now by making his dream come true. I already send it to the printers, so it can actually be done by Christmas Eve" I heard he had a big smile on his face as well.

"Oh my gosh, I can't believe this, it's, it's perfect! Thank you so much, I don't even know how to thank you"

"You don't need to thank me, this story is going to be a bestselling one, I can promise you that." I really loved hearing those words coming out of someone else's mouth as mine.

"When and where can I pick up the very first copy?"

"The very first copy is already printed so you can come pick it up anytime you want. They will be in stores January 3th, so if you need more copies before that date, you can take some more if you would like." I suddenly realized what I had accomplished and I started to feel really proud of myself.

"I'll pick up the first copy tomorrow morning around 8 and I would like the original copy back as well"

"Sure, I'll see you tomorrow morning then."

So his present was already waiting at the printers. I had to make a plan how to give it to him now. I knew my friends would be here around 8:30, so I had an hour to make a plan. I decided to change and make a plan at the same time, that way, I wouldn't waste any of my time. Ezra was going to be in New York, with his mother and other family. I took my top off and pulled a black dress on. I could bring his present to New York, but I definitely couldn't stay. If I would go straight to New York from the printers, I would be home late in the afternoon. That was definitely worth every single minute. But if I did that, I needed to contact his mother. How did I manage to do that? I let my hair down and applied a little bit more makeup. Ezra wasn't home tonight, he had a job interview at Hollis. I could sneak into his apartment and I could look for his mother's phone number? It was going to be an awkward phone call, but in the end it was worth it. If I wanted this, I really needed to get going, I had no time to waste.

Ten minutes later I walked into Ezra's apartment. I really didn't know where he kept his phonebook. I was sure he had one, because I had seen it before when he ordered take-out for us. First I checked his bookshelf out. Everything that looked just a little bit like a book or a notebook was on there. After a few minutes searching through his books, papers, magazines and newspapers I was sure his phonebook wasn't on his bookshelf. Then I walked over to his desk, there were a lot of papers he still had to grade on top of it, a few pens, but yet again no phonebook. I started going through his desk drawers and I found his phonebook in the bottom one. I found his mother's phone number and I wasn't sure what to say to her. It took a lot of courage to actually call the number, but I managed. After a few rings she answered.

"Uh, hello, who's this?" I heard her say.

"Hello, my name is Aria Montgomery. You don't really know me, but could you please listen to me for a minute?" I asked her a little bit unsure what her answer would be.

"I guess that wouldn't hurt, would it?" I sighed out of relief.

"First of all, I'm in love with your son, Ezra. We've been together for quite some time now. And as you may as well know, it's Christmas Eve tomorrow. And I'm not able to see him tomorrow, that's kind of why I am calling. I have a very special Christmas present for him and I really want him to have it on Christmas Eve. I guess I'm a little superstitious about it or something. I know you live in New York and I am able to come and deliver his present at noon. But I can't stay. So my question to you is, if you could just put the present under your tree and make sure it's the last present he'll get"

"This is kind of a lot at the same time, but I can hear the way you talk about this, that you love my son very much. I appreciate your wish and I guess I can make it work for you" After Ezra's mother said this I was smiling like a baby.

"Thank you, so, so much. You won't regret this, I promise. Just one final agreement, okay? Whatever you do, don't tell anything to Ezra, it would totally ruin the moment, please?"

"If that's what you want, you'll have it that way" I giggled when she said that.

"What's so funny, dear?"

"Ezra said exactly the same thing to me about a week ago, I just hear you are similar to each other." After I finished my sentence she was giggling as well. I could tell that Ezra was close to his mother, even though he probably wouldn't admit it.

"I'm already excited to find out what it is" She said after she stopped giggling.

"Well, you'll have to wait and see"

"Right, I'll text you the address on this number, is that okay?"

"Sure, I'll be there around noon." With that I hung up my phone and I felt content with what I had accomplished. I made Ezra's apartment neat again and I went home.

When I got home no one had arrived yet, so I still had some time to get ready.

"Where have you been?" I heard a voice say coming out of the kitchen.

"I was just out for a little bit" I answered to the voice, which I now knew was from Ella.

"Did you meet someone specifically?"

"No, why would you think that?" I said back a little bit too quick.

"I just have the feeling you're seeing someone, for quite some time now. If you do, you can tell me who the mystery boyfriend is, you know." I was a little bit shocked and I didn't know how to come up with a lie fast enough so Ella continued "You're seeing someone, aren't you? And I have the idea it's the exact same boy you had meant the text message for, about two years ago"

"If it's true, I'm not going to tell you who it is and if it's not true, I'm still not going to tell you who should have gotten that text message" I said back rather quickly and I left the kitchen before I started rambling and that wouldn't do any good to this conversation.

Before I could even go upstairs I heard the bell from the front door. The girls had finally arrived. They all wished me a happy birthday and gave me a warm hug. We settled in the living room in front of the fire stove. Ella gave us all a piece of the birthday cake and returned to the kitchen.

"So Aria, is there something you would like to tell us?" Spencer said and she put a bit of the pie in her mouth. It was the way Spencer was saying this that I knew I had to tell them something, but what could it possibly be?

"Like?" I settled with because I still wasn't sure what Spence meant.

"Like you're dating our English teacher, for example?" Spencer said this time a little bit quieter.

"Who told you that?"

"So it's true?" Emily asked now paying full attention to the conversation in front of her.

"No seriously, who told you guys this?"

"The one and only lover boy himself, Mr. Fitz" Hanna said trying to put a sexy ring to it.

Why would Ezra tell the girls their biggest secret? Why would it be so necessary to tell? And then it hit me. The roses and the original copy of Ezra's short story. We had agreed to give each other the keys to our houses after the whole 'A' thing was over, so we could be in each other's houses no matter what. Our parents could only agree, after they heard the whole story.

"So you guys helped Ezra this morning?" I said after a minute looking from face to face.

"Yes, we did. Mr. Fitz gave us detention last week, remember? He told us to read a short story. We had to read it very carefully and we had to discover what it was really about. I thought that was a pretty weird assignment, but I decided to do as he told us to. When I looked at the paper I saw that it was written by Mr. Fitz himself. After reading about three pages I escaped an Oh my god, because I was pretty sure what it was about. He looked up from the paper he was grading and simply said, I guess you figured it out? I just nodded in confirmation. It took another ten minutes for Emily to realize what the story was about"

"I walked up to him and gave him the paper back. I asked him, or rather whispered, why he wanted us to know this. He said I had to wait until Hanna figured the story out. I walked back to my seat, waiting until Hanna finished. That took a bit longer than I thought it would be, to say the least" Emily said looking into the fire in the fire stove.

"What? It's not my fault I'm not that good in concentrating on reading! Anyways, after I figured it out, I stood up and said that there was only one person that could totally rock the outfit he described on page six. I might have said he was a total badass as well" Hanna whispered the last sentence so there would be a chance I wouldn't hear, but of course I did.

"So after that he asked if we could help him with your birthday present. He knew we all had a key to your house, he just wanted to borrow one" Spencer said after she finished her piece of cake.

"I can't believe he risked all that to give me my birthday present. By the way, knowing the three of you, what did he have to do to give him one of your keys?" I asked, while I thought I heard something, but when I listened better there was nothing.

"Okay, this is the part where I jump in," Hanna said with a big smile plastered on her face "first, we wanted to know what he was going to give you. After he told us that, we weren't satisfied yet so we walked out of the classroom and we discussed what we wanted. We blinded him with a scarf and we directed him to the stage in the school theatre. We found an old clowns costume and we made him wear that. We decided it would be more fun if he did some dancing moves, so we made him do that. Surprisingly, he did everything we've asked for, I guess he was determined to give you that present. I thought that was actually really cute, it was then I realized that he did love you, for a matter of fact, he loves you very much" Hanna said, grabbing my hand and squeezed it.

"Don't get too disappointed Aria, we've got it all on tape. So here's a part of our birthday present" Emily said, handing me a memory stick. Then Hanna grabbed her purse that was next to her and gave me her part of their present. After I unwrapped the gift wrap I saw that they gave me a new notebook and a new diary, with a picture of the four of us on the front. There were two new picture frames, one of them containing another picture of the girls and the other held a picture of me and Ezra.

"Although you have to hide it somewhere, we wanted to give you a proper picture frame" Hanna said calmly.

Then Spencer handed me her part of their present. There were two VIP passes for a book signing from Harper Lee in New York. To Kill a Mockingbird happened to be Aria and Ezra's favorite book.

"And before you ask, I'm not going to tell you how I got them and we really want you to take Mr. Fitz with you. We all know you two both love the book"

"Thank you so much, girls. I love these presents. And by the way, just call him Ezra, Mr. Fitz sounds so school girlish" We continued to talk about Ezra, Toby for Spencer, Caleb for Hanna and Samara for Emily.  
>After a few hours the girls went home and I decided to go to Ezra's even though it was already getting late. I unlocked the door with my key and I opened the door to Ezra's apartment. After I closed the door, I made my way to his couch, to see him there asleep. He looked so adorable when he was asleep. I placed a few kisses in his neck, before he woke up.<p>

"Happy Birthday Aria! How did you like my present?" He said, rubbing his eyes.

"Thank you so much, I love your present, it's the best. It's so sweet of you that you told our secret to the girls. You risked so much just to give me my present. Thank you. Have I told you today already how much I love you?" I said, curled up next to him on the couch.

"Well, I had to, there was no other way you could get it. And you haven't told me how much you love me today yet. But I've got the feeling that's about to change" I turned my head to him and I leaned in to kiss him. First the kiss was soft and sweet, but it grew more hungrily and passionate. By the time I pulled back, my dress and his shirt were somewhere on his floor. He picked me up bridal style and walked me to his bedroom. We made love to each other for the first time, because we decided to wait until I turned eighteen.

* * *

><p>When I woke up the next morning, Ezra's arms were wrapped around my petite body. It felt so good to have his arms around me, but I knew I had to leave, otherwise I wouldn't make it in time in New York. I managed to pull his arms off of me as slowly as possible, so I wouldn't wake him. Before I went to the bathroom I grabbed my clothes from the weirdest places in his apartment, so I could change. When I was just combing my hair, I heard someone laugh. At first I wasn't sure who it could be, but soon I realized it was Ezra's sweet laugh. I opened the door from the bathroom to see him laughing while sleeping. At that exact moment I remembered what Hardy told me after Ezra's reading. Ezra laughs in his sleep. I always wondered what it would be like and honestly, it was the cutest thing ever.<p>

After I finished changing I wrote Ezra a quick note and left it on his nightstand. I gave him a soft peck on his cheek and left his apartment. After I picked up the first copy of his short story I drove my way to New York. Ezra's mother had texted the address yesterday evening, right after the girls gave me their presents. Before I knew it, I was in New York in front of Ezra's parents' house. There was no going back now. Before I got out of my car I wrote down a few words for Ezra to go with my present. Afterwards, I unbuckled my seatbelt and took my purse from the backseat. I walked to the porch, closing my car. First I hesitated to reach for the doorbell, but I knew I had to do it eventually. I ringed the doorbell, _here goes nothing_.

A small woman opened the door for me, she wore a wool dress with leather boots.

"Hello, you must be Aria"

"Yeah, I am. It's very nice to meet you in person" I gave her a quick smile, because I didn't know what else to do.

"Likewise. Please, come in, my dear" She said, entering me into their home.

"Would you like some coffee? I just made some and I think could use some after your long ride" She asked, already walking into their kitchen. I simply followed her.

"Coffee would be kind of nice right now, thank you" She gestured me to sit at the kitchen table, so she could pour some coffee into two red mugs. I looked around the room to bring in my surroundings. This was the place where Ezra grew up. The kitchen was very warm and family like, I figured they spend a lot of time in here. When I looked to my left I saw a few family pictures on the wall.

"Wasn't Ezra the cutest?" I heard Ezra's mom say. She took a seat in front of me and gave me my cup of coffee.

"He still is" I whispered, but when I looked at her I saw she heard exactly what I had said.

"Tell me about the two of you. How did you meet, how long have you been together, all that kind of stuff" There was curiosity in her eyes and I couldn't dare lie to her, so I told her the whole story. She wasn't thrilled at first, but she wanted to hear the whole story. After I told her everything, I felt at ease and comfortable.

"I see it in your eyes" She stated after a short comfortable silence.

"What do you exactly see, Mrs. Fitz?"

"Please just call me Rachel. I see the way you talk about him, how you drove all the way to New York, just to deliver his Christmas present. The way you glance every once in a while to his baby picture. I have never seen anyone so deeply calling the word love with their eyes. I haven't even seen the two of you together but I know, you're meant to be together. Come here, give me a hug" She stood up and pulled me into a comforting and loving hug, the ones only mothers could give. I felt genuinely happy Ezra's mother had said those words to me, it was relieving. After she pulled away we talked for a little while. When I realized it was 1:30PM already, I decided to drive home again. I gave her Ezra's present and reminded her of our promise.

"I really enjoyed talking to you, Mrs. Fi... I mean Rachel. I look forward to see you again. Ezra's going to love his present, I can guarantee you that"

"Well, it was very nice to meet you Aria. Ezra's very lucky to have you. I'm still wondering what your present is, I can't wait to figure it out"

"Goodbye, oh and Merry Christmas!"

"Have a Merry Christmas yourself" I nodded and walked to my car. When I got inside I couldn't help but feel extremely happy.

Ezra's POV

The realization came when I hung up the phone, I wasn't going to be Aria's teacher anymore. I couldn't have wished for a better Christmas present. My mom heard I hung up the phone and walked towards me.

"And?" She just asked.

"Mom, I got the job!" I said, giving her a warm hug. We walked to the living room together and sat with the rest of my family around the Christmas tree. We just finished diner and we all helped with the dishes. My brother Nate and his wife sat on the couch, watching their two children sing to the Christmas songs on the radio. Next to them was my dad, who was trying his best to stay awake. My sister Danielle and her husband were settled on the floor as they played with their four-year-old son. When he saw that I came in, his face lit up and he came running towards me.

"Uncle Ezra! Did you get the job?" He asked while I picked him up of the floor.

"Of course I did, Alex"

"Good, can we please open our presents now?" His eyes sparkled and I knew I couldn't resist them. When his nieces heard the word presents, they stopped singing and looked straight at me, begging for my approval.

"Sure, buddy" I said and I put him down again, so he could pick out a present he wanted to unwrap first. I sat down next to my mom on the leather couch.

"Alex, Claire and Ashley wait with unwrapping until all three of you have a present" Danielle said so she could take a picture. When they were all settled they smiled at the camera. Before he unwrapped his present, Alex looked around the room.

"Why are you all alone here, Uncle Ezra? Don't you have a girlfriend?" Alex asked, looking at me like he was sorry for me. I forgot how smart he was. There was an awkward tension when I didn't answer him question immediately.

"I wish she could have been here as well" I said looking down, because I knew all eyes were on me. I hadn't told anyone about Aria and this wasn't exactly the time to tell them. At least not with the children around. It seemed like Alex was content with my answer because I heard him unwrap his present.

"Look Mommy, Santa gave me a new race car!" After Alex spoke these words the tension was gone and all attention was on the kids again.

After almost all the present were unpacked, there was one more present under the tree.

"I see there's one more present," my mom said "Alex, would you grab it from under the tree for me and say who it's for" My mom hadn't even finished her sentence before Alex was picking up the present already.

"It's for Uncle Ezra" Alex said, presenting the present for me. I had no idea what it could possibly be. It wasn't heavy, but it wasn't very light either. Before I unwrapped it, I looked around to the people that had their faces on me. There was no face that said, 'that's my present'. At that point I was even more confused. I didn't get any other Christmas presents, besides a cookbook from my parents.  
>I got the gift wrap off of my gift. It was a book; no it was a short story. I looked on the cover from the book, my name in gold letters followed by the title of the book, Our Story. There was only one person who could have given me this. Aria. My Aria. Tears of joy sprang in my eyes as I looked up to my family.<p>

"What is it, Ezra?" Nate asked because they couldn't exactly see what it was.

"This is my short story, published" I said while I opened the book. There was a little note on the first page.

_Dearest Ezra,_

_First of all, Merry Christmas!  
>Secondly, I know this is the page where the author is supposed to scribble something in the book, but I guess we can make an exception.<br>First I really didn't know what I should give you for Christmas. I thought about it for such a long time, that I didn't even have a present for you until yesterday. I had this present in my mind when I walked out of your classroom yesterday. I talked to a publisher and he was very thrilled with your work to say the least. He was able to have your short story published within a day.  
>That was the first thing, and then the second came. I had to make sure the present was under your tree. So I sneaked into your apartment yesterday night, to find your mother's phone number. I knew I was taking a risk by telling her about us, but I was willing to take it. I brought your present over to New York this morning and handed it to her.<em>

_I really hope you'll like my present, but a part of me says I don't have to doubt that. I'm more proud of you than I even know how to say. You're my world and I hope we can spend Christmas together next year._

_I love you so much,_

_Aria_

When I looked up from the note again, tears were falling down my face, something I hadn't done since I was ten.

"You knew about this?" I asked my mom, while I tried to wipe away my tears.

"Yeah, I did. She asked me if I could keep the secret. It wouldn't have been a surprise anymore then. I guess she was right, I'm not going to regret this. She's such a sweet, beautiful and intelligent girl, Ezra. She literally just made your dream come true. She's the one, isn't she?"

Before I could answer her question Alex stopped me. "You're going back to Rosewood, Uncle Ezra! Like right now!"

I looked around to the rest of my family, they were all nodding in agreement.

Before I knew it, I was in my car again with my first published short story in the passenger's seat, on my way to the love of my life. When I turned my radio on, B-26 just started playing, it gave me faith in my decision to go over to her house. The moment I drove into Rosewood, I had butterflies in my stomach. I didn't know what I was going to say or do, but I was determined to see her.  
>There I was, in front of her house. There were lights coming from their Christmas tree. It was snowing lightly, which made everything even more perfect. There was no turning back now, this was it. This was the most spontaneous decision I had ever made and I could feel it was also the best one. I walked to the front door. There, I stood still for a single second, before I rang the bell.<p>

"What are you doing here?" Mike said who had opened the door. Aria who was curious who would come to their house on Christmas Eve, late at night, stood behind Mike.

"I'm here for Aria" I simply stated, because that was the only thing that came to my mind. It was, for once, the truth as well. Mike walked back to the living room. I heard him say to his parents that it was me who visited them. I saw their eyes watching us, wanting to know what happened next. Mike rushed up the stairs, probably to his bedroom.  
>Aria and I still stood there staring at each other. Our eyes held so much passion and so much love, there was only one thing left to do. Suddenly, I didn't care about anything anymore and I could see the same thing coming from her eyes. She run into my arms and I tilted her up off of the floor. We met each other's lips in a passionate kiss, which was full of excitement and love. I whirled her around, her lips never leaving mine. The kiss deepened, because we knew after this kiss everything would change. It was the most perfect kiss, I had ever felt on my lips. It contained so much passion, that you could probably see it on the outside. Eventually I pulled back and rested my forehead against hers.<p>

"You make my dreams come true, dreams I didn't even dare dreaming. You mean everything to me, Aria. I love you" I whispered, giving another soft kiss on her lips.

"I love you too, Ezra" I still had my Aria in my arms when someone interrupted us.

"Would you like to explain why you're kissing your English teacher, Aria?" Ella said who stood just next to us. I put Aria on the ground again, but I didn't let go of her hand, I took it in mine and squeezed it a little, saying that we were in this together.

"Former English teacher" I corrected her.

"Still. Are you going to tell me or not?" Ella said getting a little bit annoyed, because we really didn't say anything.

"Well, Aria and I we're... uh, a couple"

"Oh, are you?" I detected a small grin on Ella's face, like she was just teasing us. A few seconds later I heard Byron laugh out loud, who now stood next to Ella. Ella looked up at him and joined him in his laughter. Aria turned her face up to mine and had the most confusing look on her face, I knew I was wearing as much confusion as she was.

"Care to explain?" Aria asked softly.

"I have known about the two of you since exactly yesterday night. There was someone on our stairs and I knew it had to be someone else than our own family members. After I debated with myself for a few minutes whether I should or shouldn't look who it was, I heard you lock the front door. I thought this was very odd, because Hanna, Spencer and Emily wouldn't come to our house at such an unreasonable hour. When I opened my bedroom door, I saw the roses everywhere. I followed the roses to the kitchen, where I found your story. First I wasn't sure why your story would be in our kitchen, but I couldn't sleep anyways so I decided to read it. When I figured out who it was about, I was definitely angry. But I didn't want to have an opinion about something that I just knew the half of. After I read the whole thing, I felt genuinely sorry for the two of you" Aria and I looked at each other like we didn't hear it right.

"I'm sorry Mom, but could you repeat that very last sentence?"

"I feel genuinely sorry for the two of you and you know why? You have been through so much, you risked everything to just be together. I mean, Ezra, you could be send to jail if anyone found out. But yet, you loved her, probably even stronger than normal couples love each other. There were so many emotions in your story, I didn't think about in the first place. Like how the two of you could never do things normal couples could. Go to the movies or go out for dinner. I felt the saddest when I realized it was your birthday and you couldn't invite Ezra over. That was why he had to sneak into our house, just to give you his present. I told Byron this afternoon, and then I also realized you couldn't be with him with Christmas or any other important days. Where were you this afternoon anyway?"

"Well, I was actually in New York" Aria answered truthfully, because she didn't have to lie about our relationship anymore.

"What was so important in New York?"

"This beautiful man over here," She blushed a bit, before wrapping her small arms around my torso. "I kind of delivered Ezra's Christmas present to his mother. Speaking of which, how did you like your present?" She said looking up to me, with her beautiful eyes. I saw Byron and Ella walking to the living room, where the settled themselves on the couch. Aria and I followed them and we sat on the ground, before the fire stove. I wrapped my arms around her and smelled her delicious perfume.

"Like I said, you make my dreams come true and this was another one of them. I don't even know how to thank you"

"I adore making your dreams come true. Oh, before I forget, they will be in stores January third" She said, snuggling a little bit closer to me.

"What exactly did Aria give you?" Byron asked out of pure curiosity.

"She had that short story published for me" After I said that I gave her a light kiss on her forehead.

"Oh my god, Aria. How did you manage to do that? You must love him, otherwise you wouldn't effort as much as you did" Right at that moment I heard the bell rang for the next time that night.

"Hold that thought" Elle said quickly before she opened the front door.

"Hey little man, what are you doing here?" Ella asked in her oblivious children's tone.

"Did he tell you?" I thought I recognized his voice, but I wasn't sure because the kid spoke very quickly.

"Who told me what?" Ella asked getting more suspicious.

"Uncle Ezra about his girlfriend! Grandma told me everything you know" I knew that voice, it belonged to a very young man, whom I knew since he was born.

"Alex?" I heard myself say. Before I knew it, Alex came into the living room and saw me with Aria. His eyes grew bigger when he laid eyes on her. Aria seemed to notice this as well, because I heard her adorable giggle escape her mouth. Alex reached his hand to Aria and she shook it.

"Hello, I'm Alex and you look very pretty" I heard Aria's giggle another time and smiled to the picture in front of me.

"I'm Aria and you don't look so bad yourself, young man" I saw Alex blush a little bit, which looked very cute on him.

I didn't even hear that the rest of my family was gathered around in the hall of the Montgomery home.

"Mrs. Montgomery, don't worry, we took a lot of food with us, there's plenty for everyone" I heard my mom say to Ella, who was just laughing at my mother's comment.

"Oh Aria, I have a Christmas present for you as well" My mom said after she finished laughing with Ella. She made her way to us and handed Aria a very small package. Aria only had it in her hands for two seconds before the wrappings were all spilled around the floor. It was a DVD.

"What's on it?" I asked my mom myself because I got curious as well.

"I kind of videotaped you from the moment Alex handed you Aria's present. She can see your first reactions now herself" Aria pulled away from me and stood up to give my mother a big hug. This was another picture I loved very much. The two women I loved most had welcomed each other into their lives with open arms. It was exactly that moment when I remembered the question my mom asked me before she was interrupted.

"Mom, can I talk to you alone, for just a second?" I asked her, already pulling her into their laundry room.

"I was just thinking about your question. Aria's the one, mom. I want to spend my life with her, grow old together. She's my other half, I'm sure"

"I couldn't agree with you more" She said before pulling me into a hug. After she pulled away, she took something out of her pocket. It was a tiny box and I knew exactly what was in it.

"Please, give it to her, she'll appreciate it the way you want her too"

"I know Mom and I will give it to her" We got out of the laundry room and we saw everyone gathered around the huge kitchen table having fun. They didn't even see us come into the kitchen, so I covered Aria's eyes with my hands.

"Guess who?" I said playfully.

"Hmm, Santa maybe?" I heard her beautiful giggle again and gave her a soft kiss on her lips.

"Would you like to come outside with me?" I asked her. She just nodded and she took my hand into hers.

"I got the job at Hollis. Aria, I'm not going to be your teacher anymore" It was still snowing outside, but I couldn't care less.

"Can this day be even more perfect?" She said pulling her body closer to mine.

"It actually can" I took the small box out of my pocket as we stood in the middle of their backyard.

"Here's my Christmas present" I gave her the small box and she stared at it for a few seconds. I saw her eyes lighten up as she opened the box. Inside was a golden ring, with the words_ You are mine_ engraved. Every boy that was born into the Fitz' family got one on their sixteenth birthday. I saw a few tears falling from Aria's eyes.

"Thank you, it's so beautiful" I took the ring out of the box and pulled it on her finger. It looked even more beautiful on her finger. I leaned in for a kiss and soon my lips were captured with hers. It was the most romantic scene it could imagine myself in. I stood here, kissing my beautiful girlfriend, snowflakes falling everywhere around us, our families were inside having fun together and we could spend our Christmas together. Eventually, we pulled away and stared into each other's eyes. Suddenly, there was this playful look in her eyes. She reached down to get some snow together. I realized a little bit too late what she was doing, because I already had a snowball thrown into my face.

"You're so screwed, right now Aria" We threw snowballs for a few minutes before I picked her up off of the floor and threw her on the ground. I lay on top of her and attacked her with yet another passionate kiss.


End file.
